


To Live

by TheShortestManOnEarth



Series: AdorableSparkleChallenge [5]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Brief mentions of future child, Dialogue Light, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Glimadora-freeform, Somewhat reflective fic, SpecialOccasionPrompt, Talking About The Future, adorablesparklechallenge, set post series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:48:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25856158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheShortestManOnEarth/pseuds/TheShortestManOnEarth
Summary: Part 5 (Final) Part of the AdorableSparkleChallenge on Discord. Prompt: Special Occasions.The Horde didn't celebrate life. In the years she spent as a Horde soldier, Adora didn't fully understand how to celebrate life's smaller moments or appreciate how much they meant to those around her. Now that the war is over, it's time to move on and learn what it means to simply be whoever you are.Glimmer helps Adora learn how to celebrate her own life.
Relationships: Adora & Glimmer (She-Ra), Adora/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Series: AdorableSparkleChallenge [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1870189
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	To Live

**Author's Note:**

> Hey All, 
> 
> Here we are at the end of the AdorableSparkleChallenge. I'm a little sad to finish this as it's been a lot of fun to write for. This prompt ended up being a bit more serious than I planned for but it's still pretty sweet and fluffy in a sense. I got the title idea from Akira Kurosawa's film "Ikiru" (in English: To Live). I recommend watching the film because it's amazing, but it's not necessary for reading this story. 
> 
> More content is on the way with my prompts for Glimadora Week 2 beginning on the 15th and I'll resume updating "Last Night on Earth" and "Albatross" as soon as Glimadora Week is over. 
> 
> Thank you all for all your support, comments, and kudos. This challenge has been a pleasure to participate and I want to thank everyone on the Discord again for all the feedback. See the end notes for the link to the Discord for today.
> 
> Thanks for reading!

After her arrival in Bright Moon, Adora experienced many firsts. She had her first real taste of food at the festival at Thaymor and more food at the Castle. Another first was her ability to wander around without worrying about whether she’d be questioned or reprimanded. At worst she could expect that she was responsible for protecting the Castle and its surrounding kingdoms. It was a welcome responsibility. Not one that was hung over her head like she had done it to earn her keep. But one that she would gladly shoulder without being asked. A first prom came up quickly enough and for the first time Adora felt what it was like to lose someone. Or to experience that fear. 

In the Horde she’d never had to think about loss too much. To lose something, you had to have something of value to begin with. Sure, people died because the Horde was an army. But that was normal. Loss was normal. Adora didn’t know anything about her family so she couldn’t feel loss for something she never had to begin with. It made fighting easier to know that threats against her family were idle. 

Or so she thought. When she left Thaymor, she realized for the first time that the one thing she didn’t have in the Fright Zone, not matter how hard she tried to feel like it was there, was a feeling of belonging. But she still had a community she’d left behind. Her squad had been the closest thing she’d had to family. A family that whose only purpose was to destroy. That would never have lasted. Not when Adora’s heart wanted something more, something that she could treasure for the rest of her days. 

Learning to treasure the life she encountered while in Bright Moon didn’t take much effort on her part. When she had come to the kingdom of Bright Moon, she had nothing but the clothes on her back, the clothes of the enemy, and a magic sword. Anything she gained or earned, as she preferred most of the time, was new, fresh, and left her full of new vulnerabilities. Life in the Rebellion was held dear. No soldier could go out without the risk to their life being weighed and measured against the cost of victory. Often, victory wasn’t worth the lives it consumed in its heavy wake, nor was it granted a second thought if the loss was too great. To all who resided under the protection of the Queen there was a sense of community that wasn’t based on worth or value to the fight. Everyone had a place. 

Because of the high value in the smaller moments, especially the ones the Horde overlooked or ignored, every little piece of happiness was a reason to celebrate. When Bow had acted so flabbergasted that Adora had never had a birthday and comically questioned why her life was “so sad” she hadn’t understood what she’d missed. If your life was only worth as much as the service you provided to the Horde and your best value was in killing others, then of course celebrating the birth of anyone was superfluous. Hordak would likely see the very mention of the idea as a waste of his time. And Shadow Weaver, well, she never did consider paying any mind to those without power. 

When Bow first brought up the idea of celebrating Adora’s birthday, she briefly wondered if he was joking. Unlike the very first time she had learned of birthdays, she knew what it was and why it was celebrated in a general sense. But no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t grasp why she should have one for herself. It felt intimidating to think about everyone’s attention being on her simply for being alive. At least when people threw parties for She-Ra, it felt like the reward matched the service. The best she could expect in the Horde was some praise of serving well and winning a battle. The reward of course was to rise in the ranks but more importantly it benefitted the Horde as a unit. That was the beginning and end of the meaning of celebration in the Fright Zone. 

In retrospect, it _was_ sad. But it was all the warrior knew. 

Then Adora had to pull Glimmer from agonizing pain and torture at the hands of Shadow Weaver after the Princess Prom and face the possibility that she couldn’t bring the girl home alive to her mother. The blonde warrior didn’t know much about parents, but she did know that Angella wanted nothing more than for her daughter to thrive. 

It took a while, despite Adora’s newfound love for festivals and parties, to accept having a birthday of her own. As far as the blonde warrior was concerned there was a time and place for celebrations. She couldn’t bring herself to allow for desires when the Rebellion needed her to be more than just Adora. But after Angella’s sacrifice, and then later Horde Prime’s attempt to wipe individuality from the entire planet, the need to acknowledge the small things returned. 

Bright Moon’s citizens were more than willing to throw a party for their protector, for She-Ra, and to honor her for an entire week. The prospect felt strange to Adora. But between the bright eyes of excitement Bow gave her and the enthusiasm of the ever- theatrical Swift Wind the warrior lost a battle of will. She didn’t have it in her to fight any more. If not for the people of Bright Moon, then she would let Bow and the rest of the Rebellion fighters have their week of festivities. 

Adora was present for the opening of the festival that had been planned for the first day of the weeklong celebration and then decided to wander around on her own. She turned to see crowd of sea elves as they ran by the warrior, laughing, and pointing at the vibrant decorations. Two stopped at a stall selling local treats from Thaymor. A ghost of a smile tugged at her mouth at the sight of the families spending a carefree afternoon together. The smell of baked goods drifted through the air, drawing her in and eventually she caved to her grumbling stomach’s demands. 

She decided on a sweet roll that was covered in a red, white, and gold icing, in honor of She-Ra, and found a small hill to sit on while still being able to keep an eye on the activities below. After finishing her treat, she sighed and laid back against the grass. It was a little wet still from the rain, causing the dew to seep into her clothes a little. But the blonde didn’t mind. She tucked her arms behind her head and closed her eyes. There was no chance of her falling asleep entirely, but she had learned a thing or two from Glimmer about relaxing. The trick being that the warrior had to feel safe. A feeling she knew that she could never experience while in the Horde. 

“Adora.” The soft voice was a welcome contrast to the loud bustling and energy of the festival. “Swift Wind said he saw you come up here.” Adora felt the air grow warmer as the other settled beside her. 

“Did he also tell you he accidentally kicked over three apple carts?” A blue eye opened and gave the Queen reclining on her hands a bemused look of exasperation. 

“Knowing Swifty, I doubt it was an accident.” Glimmer said with a knowing smile. “He just likes kicking things.” The blonde warrior laughed. “And eating apples.” 

“That’s true.” She agreed. A comfortable silence passed as they sat on the hill. During the war they never had time to just sit and appreciate what the world had to offer. Rare were the times when the Queen could have time to herself. With no one to call either of them to a meeting or to lead a mission, they felt no guilt in taking time to sit to the side, and just watch the way the clouds in the sky moved or the blades of grass swayed to the rhythm of the breeze. So many tiny pieces of life were sprouting forth that neither of them could have predicted. 

“Are you okay with this whole celebration thing?” The Queen ventured, her eyes searching the blonde. Adora opened her eyes completely now and sat up, wrapping her arms around her knees as she drew them in. “I know Bow pushed it really hard.” 

The blonde nodded with a smile. “Everyone needed this.” Glimmer grunted in annoyance the sweeping answer. It was just like Adora to have a party that was in theory, about her, instead about the entire Kingdom of Bright Moon. The preparations had been made so fast that the Queen hardly had the time to talk to Adora about how she felt. 

“I didn’t ask about everyone else, Adora.” Glimmer said with a scowl. She reached out, threading her fingers through the warrior’s own. “I asked about _you_. Now tell me what you’re feeling, or I swear to the gods I’ll shove you down this hill.” 

“You wouldn’t.” Adora frowned skeptically. The raised eyebrow and forcefully passionate, yet stubborn expression the warrior had grown accustomed to receiving when her girlfriend had run up against the warrior’s own stubbornness and was making a point of stalling it in its tracks. The brow climbed higher at Adora’s continued skepticism as if to say, “try me”. Glimmer didn’t make idle threats and she had made up her mind that the warrior was going to spill. The blonde sighed. 

“I like the festival.” Adora said carefully. “You know how much fun I had at the one in Thaymor when we first met.” The Queen nodded, now listening intently without interrupting. “I’m just not sure if…” She trailed off, picking a blade of grass, and twisting it between her fingers. A gentle squeeze of her hand brought her back to looking into the lavender eyes of the once young girl, now woman, that had captured the warrior at Thaymor and never quite returned the former Horde soldier’s heart after the encounter. “If… this is okay to have. I’m just one person, Glimmer. Why is all this for _me_?” 

The Queen tilted her head to the side, not quite comprehending the question. Though she did have some experience with Adora’s constant struggles with self-worth, courtesy of the Horde’s training. Over the past few years of their friendship Glimmer had made it her mission to try to undo the damage the Horde had inflicted on the warrior. Some, however, were left as indelible scars on the mind and body. 

“The Horde taught you that you’re only worth something if you’re fighting or giving something. I get that that’s what they had to teach you as a soldier.” The pink haired Queen clenched her teeth. “I hate that they did that to you.” She took a deep breath to calm the anger that had seeped into her voice and turned back to the warrior. “But you have the same right as everyone else to just live your life. To celebrate the fact that you’re alive and here.” There was a pause as Glimmer pulled the blonde closer and pressed a kiss to her hair, trickling them down her nose and earning a giggle as the sensation tickled Adora’s skin. 

“And I, for one, want to celebrate every single day I have with you.” Glimmer’s smile spread across her body and Adora swore that it was powerful enough to make the Queen’s hair appear to glow brighter with each passing second. Getting to use She-Ra’s magic could never compare to the feeling of being swept off her feet when Glimmer teleported them. Or how it felt when the magic could be free. To exist without control. The way it should have been all along. 

That same feeling of belonging never left the warrior, who became the second Queen of Bright Moon some years later. Though it wasn’t until the day the golden haired Queen laid eyes on the small child in her wife’s arms as she squirmed and swung her tiny fists into the air that the desire to treasure life in all its simplicities compounded. Before, all the things Adora had done were for the sake of fighting, for surviving, and proving her worth. Now, as Glimmer held out the child for the warrior to take, there was a sense of need. A different kind than had dominated the warrior all her life. The Horde had taken life, had treated it as expendable, and hadn’t placed any value in life’s special moments. A gentle hand stayed the infant’s wild flailing. 

“I want you to promise me something.” Adora said to the child, who didn’t understand what her mother was saying, but two small eyes stared up attentively just the same. “I want you to promise me that you’ll never stop living, never stop believing in yourself, and never forget that you are so very loved.” She leaned down and kissed the small head as two tiny hands lightly gripped the Queen’s shirt. Once Adora was a warrior first and an individual second. She didn’t have the time to think about who she wanted or to have a moment to consider the mark she would leave on the universe. 

_You cannot control magic… magic just is._

But here and now, there was nothing but this moment. This small bit of magic that few could name, but all could feel. Adora wanted nothing more than for this new little light of her life to shine brighter than all the stars in the sky. To become the Moon’s partner to dance in the night and the Sun’s pride in the day. Each breath was a song, each cry from the infant’s mouth a sign that life was still there, and each day in the life something worth holding onto. 

Magic was life and life was magic. And no magic was more powerful than the heart’s desire to keep beating. All three hearts of their small family sparkled and to the delight of all the magic between them, there was no question in Adora’s heart that she wanted to celebrate every day she had left in this life.

**Author's Note:**

> Today's Discord Link to the Challenge: https://discord.gg/Qaj6bk
> 
> Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!


End file.
